1.35pm: After applause, Zach comments that Tim and he have had "a really interesting few years and a long road to get here".

1.36pm: Tim begins by saying that "every year coming here is so exciting" and credits the fans who "have been so responsible for this wild and incredible journey".

1.37pm: Tim assures the audience that he has no news on the fate of Heroes. "We were not fully prepared [to not be picked up for a fifth season]," he admits. "We ended in a way that, while it had a kind of symmetry to it, we were really looking forward to [continuing the story]."

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"When there is something to announce, I will make it known," he promises, optimistic about the fact that Heroes is such "an incredibly potent brand across the world". He insists that he's pleased that it was the third most downloaded show, saying that he really "[honours] those who find the show in any way they can".

1.39pm: On to the subject of Shift. Zach asks Tim about his experience of moving into new territories of storytelling. Tim recounts the steep learning curve he encountered with Heroes, telling a story from multiple points of view over various media rather than the traditional "one-way street" of TV.

1.40pm: Tim goes off on a promotional tangent to inform the audience of a scavenger hunt, details of which are of little use to those unable to ferret around the Comic-Con venue.

1.44pm: We finish the promo reel, only to learn that it was voiced by Zach.

1.45pm: Seen to be looking at his phone, Zach explains that this is where he keeps his questions. He asks about the origins of Shift.

Tim explains that for years there has been interest, from himself and publishers, in writing a book but he was hindered by his day job. Luckily the writers' strike freed up some time and he came up with an idea while researching history on the internet. He admits that he'd had "no idea what it entailed to write a book" and his agent insisted on sending "dry, boring" proposals. He reiterates the multiplatform approach and details a web proposal based on adapted CIA files. He hooked up with prose writer, Dale Peck, and got to work on trilogy The Gate of Orpheus.

1.49pm: Zach asks the differences between writing prose and scripts. Tim comments that "a lot of us (screenwriters) fancy ourselves as 'real' writers". "I have the luxury of writing for production [where] you're not trying to dazzle with words, it's more about clarity and efficiency." He adds that his scriptwriting habits have influenced his approach to Shift. "The book is written in very short chapters, with the idea that scenes feel filmic and cinematic."

1.51pm: Zach acknowledges that the book features multiple storylines and asks for hints about the story. He then settles for the premise, which Tim gives him. It's a "historical thriller with sci-fi and supernatural elements to it", in which the last 50 years of history are reimagined. Caught up in CIA mind control experiments, protagonist Chandler Forrestal experiences new powers when given LSD. Set in the 1960s and in the era of the JFK assassination, he finds himself "in the centre, vortex of seismic events, crucial events in history".
Other characters include the villain, a "dogged FBI agent" following his story, and a "woman who shares Chandler's abilities who Chandler has to save and protect".

1.54pm: Zach wonders how blurry the line between truth and Tim’s story is. Tim gives a description of the CIA's MK Ultra programme in the '50s and '60s and the "search for a truth serum" or "Manchurian Candidate super-soldier" in the "heart of the Cold War". "The messy part of this was that for this 15-year period, the CIA dosed 120,000 unwilling and unwitting Americans with LSD. Some were convicts, some were soldiers, some were students… they even would test johns caught with prostitutes. None of it really came out until 1975." He concludes: "[It's] the stuff of cheesy spy thrillers and [it was] really happening."

1.57pm: Tim recounts a loudspeaker calling him from lunch recess to be told of the assassination of JFK. "Even at that age I knew it was a very seminal event," he says, revealing this to be one of the reasons behind the title - "that shift that happened at that point in history… a true watershed".

2.02pm: Part of the premise is that we only use a certain percentage of the brain. Part of the brain acts as a filter and only 5% of the info that's out there is registered. He calls this "the Gate of Orpheus". LSD serves the function of the lyre of Orpheus in mythology, allowing access to the other 95%, including "telepathy, telekinesis, ESP".

2.04pm: Asked about the arc of the trilogy, Tim says he's "interested in how this runs through history, the seismic events that created our… consciousness". He hints that the second "shift" was the fall of the Soviet Union. He explains that the story runs from 1963 to the present day, and that the present day will be in two years' time.

2.06pm: Zach invites questions from the audience.

2.08pm: Tim is asked for advice to get into writing. He describes scriptwriting and prose writing as "two different animals" but observes that "a good story is a good story". He also notes the trend of employing shorter scenes in thrillers and "the use of 'cut to' in a cinematic way".

2.10pm: Provoked by a question about conspiracies, Tim says that the footage of Lee Harvey Oswald being shot - at the time a "startling live event" - now looks "phoney" and "doesn't pass the smell test as real. It was overly lit... clichéd."

2.15pm: An audience member challenges Tim on his apparent obsession with superpowers. "It's funny, this idea and Heroes are definitely distant cousins… about people who are struggling to cope with and figure out extraordinary things that are happening. [I'm] more interested in that than the actual supernatural part… how people are stretched and pulled in a life-changing kid of way. Just the human story of how people cope with change." However, he says he’s "too logical and sceptical to believe in [these abilities]".

2.18pm: Tim promises "online presence" to keep the Orpheus story alive in between books. "We'll fish where the fish are," he reasons.

2.21pm: The panel draws to a close as Tim and Zach thank the audience.

2.22pm: Tim shouts at the departing audience that Shift is released on August 10.